


Bugs

by deepspecter



Category: Kamen Rider Ghost
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-06-26
Packaged: 2018-07-18 08:23:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7307500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deepspecter/pseuds/deepspecter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alain finds a new hobby: digging for bugs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bugs

Alain sprung up from underneath his futon cover and threw his sweater over his head. He rose slowly, careful as not to wake the sleeping Makoto beside him. Makoto was curled up on his side, his hair a black tousled mess that swept over his forehead. In his sleep, he had kicked his legs free; now that they were bare, he was slightly trembling from the morning chill despite the futon cover piled up high on his upper body. Alain paused, watching the gentle rising and falling of Makoto’s shoulder that came with every breath he took. His eyes began to wander, settling on the other boy’s lidded eyes, trailing off along the dark lashes. They began to flutter and parted ever-so-slightly, and Makoto stirred. Alain jumped, his heart racing. He had not meant to stare, and if Makoto caught him looking down at him… but Makoto remained asleep.

Alain sighed. The human body was a lot sneakier than he realised. Did the body slightly open its eyes during slumber as some sort of defense mechanism? Did Makoto subconsciously realise he was being stared at? Could he see? Alain thought he should ask Akari about it, but then he would have to explain himself, and-

A small _tap_ from outside the window broke him from his reverie. His eyes darted to the source of the sound, suddenly on alert. However, it had just been a bird landing outside the window, and Alain remembered what he had gotten out of bed for. He quickly adjusted Makoto’s futon cover and left the room, stumbling from the tatami onto the floorboards outside. He crept into the living room, dodging all the creaky spots which he had memorised every single one of after being caught by Akari on one of his midnight trips to the fridge.

“I won’t tell Onari, but don’t eat so late at night again, okay? It’s not good for your body,” she had lectured with a sigh.

Alain scoffed at the memory. _I’m not going to let her boss me around. Besides, nothing odd has happened to my body. So there_ is _something she isn’t correct about_...

However, muscle memory could only take him as far as the other side of the dining room. From then on, he had to rely on his vision – and how poor it was in this light! Alain nearly shouted out loud when he stubbed his toe on a door frame. It took all the effort and energy he could muster to stifle it into a strange, almost pathetic wheeze. He had to lean against the wall and limp all the way to the temple entrance, nearly knocking over the main telephone in his laborious journey. Alain jammed his feet into his shoes and bumbled his way out into the garden.

Twinkling drops of dew hung from every blade of grass, rolling slowly and falling with every passing whisper of the wind. A fine mist veiled the temple, its usually welcoming appearance a shadowy and daunting structure. The morning was cool and pleasant on the cheeks but nippy on the nose and fingertips. Alain took a deep breath, letting the air rush into his lungs, letting himself be immersed in the fine morning, savouring the cool sensations like a sheet of slippery, delicate silk rolling against his skin. He tiptoed amongst the trees, scanning the ground until he found a large stick. Satisfied after testing its comfortable weight in his hands, he wandered further into the silent garden, humming a small song he had picked up from the TV.

Alain began to scan along the tops of the trees, searching for the biggest one. He found it not long after; its towering, swaying foliage would be quite hard to miss, after all. A shaft of sunlight streaming through a slight gap in the mist set it aglow, the raindrops from last night’s downpour sparkling. Part of him wanted to stand back and admire the scene around him, but another, stronger voice in his mind was calling. He had to start digging, immediately.

Alain plunged the stick into the damp earth excitedly. The _shf shf_ of the dirt shifting continued uninterrupted, as Alain continued his fervent search for the “creepy crawlies” Takeru had shown him. There was just something so… _fascinating_ and oddly entertaining about these things. He had never seen anything like these little undulating creatures back in his world; there were the fearsome yet majestic gundari, but they were only similar in shape to these quirky little things.

He squinted at the ground. A smooth, shiny head was wiggling its way from out of the dirt, wobbling to and fro. Alain stuck his hand into the dirt and pulled it out. The worm writhed, as if pleading to be put back into the ground. However, Alain didn’t understand that worms needed the dark dampness of the underground to survive. He laid it in his palm and prodded it, watching it squirm. He grinned, watching it squiggle about with an almost fluttering quality. He gave it another prod; it twisted and flipped in the other direction. He continued to poke it until it rolled out of his hand and onto the loose dirt below with a soundless flop. Frowning a little out of disappointment, Alain shrugged and left it alone, picking up his stick to dig once more.

It was not long before he uncovered a fat, pulsing white grub. Its tiny body shimmied about in the hole, confused by the blast of fresh air. Alain pinched it with his fingers, feeling its plump flesh give. He pinched it again, lifting it into his palm. The small lump was quite funny to look at – and very bouncy to the touch too, he noticed. Much bouncier than the last critter. It scrunched up into the best ball shape it could manage when he touched it, which was most fascinating.

“So these things also hunch up when they feel unsafe, just like humans do,” Alain mused. “Very interesting. I wonder which one thought of it first?”

He continued to dig, hoping to uncover more fat white grubs, but not one other decided to show itself.

“Perhaps they think they’re under attack. I wonder how these bugs communicate? They clearly do not have mouths or ears, like humans do,” he thought out loud. “I must ask Akari when I return.”

Alain stopped digging and patched the holes up, moving off to find another spot. He tried recalling what Takeru had told him… to look under big patches of leaves, was it? There were plenty of trees shedding their leaves in the huge garden, and although Onari was a very capable busybody, he had simply been too preoccupied with the Ganma to properly sweep the temple grounds. This should be easy.

The mist was beginning to clear, making way for the intensifying rays of sunlight. The temple residents would be up soon, and they would probably wonder why Alain was missing. He would have to be quick. Scooting around to the back of the temple, he began to dig under the pile of leaves closest to him with renewed fervour.

And eureka! Alain let out a hushed “ _wow”_ as he watched the cluster of almost furry-looking worms wiggle their hundreds of legs about. He was tempted to stick his entire hand into the congregation, but a small voice in the back of his mind told him it was probably unwise to do so. Alain began to look around for something he could carry the bugs with.

“This’ll do,” he nodded contently, picking up a large piece of bark. He stuck it into the hole and scooped up as many as he could and bolted back towards the temple.

His footsteps thudded excitedly up the stairs and he dashed in, nearly forgetting to take off his shoes. Alain kicked them off and continued to run, almost slipping on the floorboards and crashing into Makoto.

“Alain! I was just looking for you!” Makoto gasped, grabbing Alain’s shoulder. “Where did you go? Everyone’s looking for you.”

“Makoto, look at this thing I found,” Alain said, giddy with excitement as he picked up a wriggling, multi-legged creature from the piece of bark. “It looks like a gundari. Do you want to hold it?”

“I- … I’m fine,” Makoto squeaked, trying to tear his eyes away from the writhing millipede. Alain grinned, poking it with his pinky. Its soft body twisted and its legs curled in and out, convulsing and flinching in silence.  
  
“It’s amusing, isn’t it?” Alain commented gleefully.  
  
Makoto’s eyes bulged as he nodded quietly, holding back the urge to run away.


End file.
